The 5th Wave

Starred review from February 25, 2013
Yancey makes a dramatic 180 from the intellectual horror of his Monstrumologist books to open a gripping SF trilogy about an Earth decimated by an alien invasion. The author fully embraces the genre, while resisting its more sensational tendencies (rest assured, though, there are firefights and explosions aplenty). A rare survivor of the invasion, 16-year-old Cassie, armed with an M16 rifle and her younger brother’s teddy bear, is trying to reunite with her brother and escape the “Silencer” (assassin) trying to kill her. Meanwhile, 17-year-old “Zombie,” an unwitting military recruit, is facing a crisis of conscience. The story’s biggest twists aren’t really surprises; the hints are there for readers to see. Yancey is more interested in examining how these world-shaking revelations affect characters who barely recognize what their lives have become. As in the Monstrumologist series, the question of what it means to be human is at the forefront—in the words of cartoonist Walt Kelly, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” It’s a book that targets a broad commercial audience, and Yancey’s aim is every bit as good as Cassie’s. Ages 14–up. Agent: Brian DeFiore, DeFiore and Co.

April 1, 2013
The challenge? Surviving the genocide of the human race when aliens attack Earth in the not-too-distant future. Sixteen-year-old Cassie, her brother Sam and her dad survived the first four gruesome waves of the attack. Together, the three wait out the titular fifth in a military base for survivors until school buses arrive to take all children to safety, including her brother Sam. Cassie, her dad and the rest of the adults are then divested of their weapons and marched into a bunker by their protectors. Cassie escapes, only to see her dad (and everyone else) brutally executed by their so-called protectors. She then embarks on a mission to rescue her brother. As in his previous efforts (The Monstrumologist, 2009, etc.), Yancey excels in creating an alternative world informed by just enough logic and sociology to make it feel close enough to our own. The suspension-of-disbelief Kool-Aid he serves goes down so easy that every piece of the story--no matter how outlandish--makes perfect sense. The 500-plus-page novel surges forward full throttle with an intense, alarming tone full of danger, deceit and a touch of romance. The plot flips back and forth with so much action and so many expert twists that readers will constantly question whom they can trust and whom they can't. Best of all, everything feels totally real, and that makes it all the more riveting. Nothing short of amazing. (Science fiction. 14 & up)

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April 1, 2013

Gr 9 Up-Cassie travels with just the essentials. First on the list: Luger, M-16, ammo, Bowie knife. Incidentals like food, water, sleeping bag, and nail clippers come further down. A nondescript 16-year-old, she is one of the very few people left alive on Earth. Aliens sent waves of destructive forces to eradicate humans: Cassie's family survived the 1st and 2nd Waves. Her mother died in the 3rd Wave (Pestilence) and her father in the 4th (Silencers). Her little brother may still be alive; he may even be safe in a military compound, as Cassie deals with the 5th Wave- a carefully orchestrated survival dance of kill or be killed. The aliens are never described in detail, and their reasons for wanting the humans gone are not clear. But they are ruthless and determined, and their methods for gaining control mean readers will never again see owls as the friendly, mail-delivering avians portrayed in the world of Harry Potter. The compelling story is told from the viewpoints of Cassie and Ben, who is now a soldier known as Zombie. Cassie crushed on Ben at school, but he never particularly noticed her. Now he has transformed from handsome high school sports star to focused paramilitary killer. Yancey's story is full of violent twists and turns, but character development continues along with nonstop action. Cassie and Ben grow out of high school self-centeredness and find leadership qualities. Cassie's interactions with an alien elevate him from a one-dimensional "bad guy" role. While the big body counts (billions die) happen largely offscreen, there are numerous more personal instances in which teens are both killers and killed. The ending has enough planned loose ends to practically guarantee a sequel.-Maggie Knapp, Trinity Valley School, Fort Worth, TX

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2013
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* The Monstrumologist series set a bar for YA horror nearly impossible to match. Can Yancey do the same for sci-fi? He makes a hell of an effort with this ambitious series starter set in the aftermath of a crushing alien invasion in which the aliens themselves never appeared. Seven billion humans have died in the months following the appearance of a giant mother ship. Wave 1: an electromagnetic pulse rendering all machines useless. Wave 2: tsunamis wiping out coastal cities. Wave 3: the Red Death, a deadly plague carried by birds. Wave 4: Silencers, humans who were implanted with alien intelligence as fetuses. We don't even want to know about Wave 5do we? Monstrumologist fans will be surprised to discover that Yancey grounds his multiperspective survivalist thriller in two fairly conventional YA voices: Cassie, 16, whose grim solitary existence changes when she is rescued by hunky but mysterious Evan; and Zombie, 17, exsports star thrown into a brutal boot camp to train as an alien killer. Yancey's heartfelt, violent, paranoid epic, filled with big heroics and bigger surprises, is part War of the Worlds, part Starship Troopers, part Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and part The Stand, but just close enough to dystopic trends to make this a sure thing for reviewers and readers alike. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Hype has been heavy since a big preempt sale and an announced 500,000 first printing. Film rights are sold, tours are planned, ads will be omnipresentneed we say more?(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

September 30, 2013
The alien invasion did not happen the way anyone expected, and the few hundred thousand humans left standing are trying to understand how the fifth attack wave will play out. Sixteen-year-old Cassi lost her father and is trying to stay alive to eventually save her younger brother, but to do so, she’ll have to rely on others. Narrators Brandon Espinoza and Phoebe Strole are superb and keep listeners riveted throughout. Espinoza covers the various chapters told from male points of view, while Strole narrates chapters told from Cassie’s point of view, ably capturing the young girl’s range of emotions. Ages 14–up. A Putnam hardcover.

May 1, 2013
"Once they found us, we were toast," says sixteen-year-old survivor Cassie, after aliens have invaded Earth. No "little green men and giant mechanical spiders spitting out death rays," no earthlings locked in epic battles. Just seven billion humans killed in waves of systematic attacks. First, a massive electromagnetic pulse knocked out the power grid, breaking down the social order. Then an attack on the coastlines created killer tsunamis, followed by a worldwide ebola-like plague, followed by the emergence of what Cassie calls the Silencers, implanted in humans years before, out to kill any remaining people. Cassie prepares herself for the fifth wave, the final takeover, fearing that she may be all that's left of humanity -- but "if I am the last one, then I am humanity. And if this is humanity's last war, then I am the battlefield." She's alone until she meets seventeen-year-old Evan Walker, "a very good-looking guy with a lopsided grin and large strong hands," and together they must figure out how to fight back. Until then, the pacing is slow and methodical, with the action escalating only toward the conclusion. Still, Yancey vividly portrays Cassie's existential crisis in a broken world: how to live, why to live, what to believe in, and what to care about. As with other current dystopian novels, fans will read breathlessly to see if the potent mix of war, romance, and hope are enough to save a world. dean schneider

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2013
Cassie, sixteen, prepares herself for the fifth wave of aliens, the final takeover, fearing that she may be all that's left of humanity. She's alone until she meets "very good-looking" Evan Walker, and together they must figure out how to fight back. Yancey vividly portrays Cassie's existential crisis in a broken world: how to live, why to live, and what to care about.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)